You Should Never Put Tomatoes In Guacamole. Here's Why

When it comes to making the perfect guacamole, less is more, or so says blogger Sydney Kramer of The Crepes of Wrath, a member of "Martha's Circle" — a selection of blogs selected by the editors of Martha Stewart. Kramer reveals while she has no problem with tomatoes — she doesn't feel they fulfill any meaningful function in the avocado-y treat, except for as a filler. She writes: "When you eat guac, what you want is creamy avocado, fresh lime, savory onion, salt and maybe a little cilantro, if that's your thing. I'm never putting tomatoes in my guacamole and neither should you. It's kind of a game changer, I have to say. Less is more, especially when it comes to guac. Don't knock it 'til you try it, kids."

Kramer isn't alone in thinking that tomatoes are an unnecessary extra. Chad Brauze, one of Chipotle's executive chefs, went on Instagram recently to share the recipe for the chain's iconic guacamole, which was described as basic and irresistible. It called for just six ingredients: 2 ripe Hass avocados; 2 teaspoons of lime juice, 2 tablespoons of cilantro, a quarter cup of red onion, half a jalapeño, diced, and a quarter teaspoon of kosher salt (via Today). 

To Bon Appetit's Rick Martinez, pulling off a good guac requires more than just leaving tomatoes out (in fact, he says it's okay to leave them in — if you need a filler, that is). Otherwise, he suggests starting off with Hass avocados that are uniformly ripe. He also recommends cutting out blemishes, which leads to the guac turning into a dirty green. Martinez warns to stay away from the food processor for this particular side dish, since a fork, or a Mexican mortar and pestle, will do just fine.

And if you have a problem with sodium — cover your eyes for this tip, because Martinez recommends going big on salt — but to wait five minutes after you've salted your masterpiece to taste it, so your flavors have a chance to combine. Last but not least, do not forget the lime juice, otherwise the dip becomes too rich. Use lemon juice and you could end up with the topping for a killer avocado toast, which may be good, but it wasn't exactly what you had in mind. Martinez doesn't talk about cilantro, which can be a rather divisive ingredient, but given the evidence, we could say the same about tomatoes.